Dowtrie is a name that was carried to England in the great wave of migration from Normandy following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Dowtrie family lived in Sussex at Moor House, Petworth, not far from Battle Abbey. [1]CITATION[CLOSE]Burke, John Bernard, The Roll of Battle Abbey. London: Edward Churton, 26, Holles Street, 1848, Print. Hawtrie is an adaptation of Hauterive,Normandy, the name of which literally means high river.

Early Origins of the Dowtrie family

The surname Dowtrie was first found in Sussex where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor of Heringham. Soon after the Domesday Book survey, a census initiated by Duke William of Normandy after his conquest of England in 1066 A.D., the family built Heringham Priory. [2]CITATION[CLOSE]Lowe, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print. The first Norman noble to settle was from Hauterive, probably assuming the cognate 'de Hauterive'. He came from the arrondisement of Alencon in Normandy. It is most likely a corruption of the Norman Hauterive which produced the family name but, strangely, Dawtry and Dealtry have also been attributed to the same source, this from a Latinization of the location of their estates in Sussex, i.e., De Alta Ripa, a high bank or cliff. The Dawtries, the main house of which is in Petworth parish, are one and the same as the Hawtries.

Early History of the Dowtrie family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dowtrie research.Another 199 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 165 and 1659 are included under the topic Early Dowtrie History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dowtrie Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years the English language had no fixed system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations occurred commonly in Anglo Norman surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Dowtrie were recorded, including Hawtre, Hawtree, Hawtrie, Dawtre, Dawtree, Dawtrie, Hawtrey, Haultrey, Dealtre, Dealtrie, Dawtrey, Dawtry, Daltry, Haltry, Haltrie and many more.

Early Notables of the Dowtrie family (pre 1700)

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Migration of the Dowtrie family to the New World and Oceana

The unstable environment in England at this time caused numerous families to board ships and leave in search of opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad in places like Ireland, Australia, and particularly the New World. The voyage was extremely difficult, however, and only taken at great expense. The cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels caused many to arrive diseased and starving, not to mention destitute from the enormous cost. Still opportunity in the emerging nations of Canada and the United States was far greater than at home and many went on to make important contributions to the cultures of their adopted countries. An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Dowtrie arrived in North America very early: John Dawtres who settled in Virginia in 1636; William Dawtrey settled in Barbados in 1683.